Pastor Could Face Jail for Housing Homeless, Battles Government

The attorney for an Ohio pastor who reportedly faces criminal charges for housing the poor is accusing City of Bryan officials of "unlawful harassment" and waging "lawfare." Ryan Gardner, an attorney with First Liberty, a religious liberty law firm, told CBN News there's a hearing on May 13 seeking injunctive relief to stop the city's actions against Dad’s Place and its pastor, Chris Avell. "On April 24th, the fire chief, the assistant fire chief, and a police officer burst through the church's doors [at] 5:30 a.m. for a surprise, unannounced fire inspection," Gardner said. "And, upon completing that inspection, they immediately cited the church for new violations, which had never been discussed before." According to the attorney, the city now requires the church to have fire sprinklers installed — something he finds strange considering officials' past visits to the church. Watch him explain. "The church has now been inspected six or seven times, and in each of the previous fire inspection reports, never once did they mention sprinklers," Gardner said. "So, this is nothing more than an example of the city again moving the goalpost, and it's clear that no matter what the church does, no matter what changes it makes, the city is always going to find something new to do." As CBN News recently reported, it appeared earlier this year that Avell and Dad's Church were coming to a resolution with city officials over the house of worship's decision to house the homeless, which officials said violated zoning laws. But that changed last month after the parties again reached an impasse. Attorneys for Avell filed a motion last month to show cause against Bryan, Ohio, on the basis officials purportedly failed to abide by an agreement requiring them to notify the court if they planned to take any such actions against the pastor. Gardner said the city served Avell "with new criminal charges for keeping his church open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week." Gardner reiterated these details to CBN News, saying his team was trying to address the city's concerns but that "good faith only ran one way." "While the church was doing what it said it would do, the city was feigning cooperation while, in fact, doing nothing more than building a new case against the church," he said.